Coming of age ceremonies are an integral part of life, marking milestones and creating a new sense of identity. BUILD ended 2025 with a retreat in Uganda for some of its leaders from our core countries. We listened to and learnt from one another, developed a fresh sense of purpose, and established a formal network.
While BUILD’s roots are in the Church of Uganda, its shoots have spread out across other countries. It was never the plan to go beyond Uganda, but it is no surprise that it has. From the start, BUILD brought together individuals from across the spectrum of Uganda’s geography and diversity, including those from within the refugee community. Studying the scriptures together created an inter-cultural flavour and impetus at an early stage. And from 2011 trainers started travelling to Rwanda, Tanzania, Burundi and DR Congo in response to invitations to develop BUILD in these countries. Trainee-trainers then came from all those countries and others besides, including Kenya and South Sudan, with those trainers then sharing the work back home and, in the instance of the South Sudanese, in the refugee settlements within Uganda too. More recently, BUILD has seen training extending to Ethiopia and Chad and there is interest from further afield, capacity being the limiting factor.
No wonder an informal network of individuals and programmes has emerged and evolved across the region, with Ugandans, Tanzanians, Rwandans, Congolese and others criss-crossing borders and serving alongside one another. For instance, Kenyans have travelled to new areas of Tanzania and up to Ethiopia to share the work. A Tanzanian regularly visited Eastern DR Congo to help with Swahili translation, joining Ugandans who were also there, encouraging the work. There are multiple examples, as this news feed showcases.
This has led to a situation in which a BUILD trainer can naturally say, “regionally, the connection is strong: we share materials, coach new trainers, and learn from one another’s challenges” (as noted in the previous post about the recent evaluation). Our retreat sought to formalise this reality, leading to the creation of the BUILD Training Network (BTN). The network represents a natural progression towards more structured coordination, collaboration and accountability, a direct response to requests for, “a regional platform for BUILD implementers to share lessons, harmonise approaches, and sustain consistency across countries.”
For the retreat, leaders were gathered from the core countries of Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania, with Ethiopia also represented. There was unanimous agreement early on to form the network, and the main task was then to develop and draft a protocol together to guide the way in which we work as different programmes within a single network. As the document begins,
“The BUILD Training Network protocol is the unique set of guidelines and procedures that we have designed, agreed, and continue to develop together, in order to help our members and associates implement and grow BUILD programmes in their local contexts and in relationship to one another, so that our work together as a network can flourish.”
There was a commitment to the network being operational from 2026 with a small council made up of representatives that will meet together regularly in-person and online. A chair and network coordinator will be appointed in due course.
For a statement of faith, the initial suggestion was to adopt an existing one from an organisation we relate to. However, the group decided we should have our own, with BUILD emphases embedded. We have since developed the BTN Statement of Faith, an unexpected but welcome output and asset for the network.
Finally, a central website was proposed, and we have since secured the domain ‘buildtraining.network’ – watch that space.
